CARACAS, March 13 (Reuters) - Venezuela said on Friday it
has started the process of filing for the annulment of an award
that orders the South American country to pay U.S. bottle maker
Owens-Illinois $455 million in compensation for
nationalizations.

Seeking an annulment will automatically stay the award,
Venezuela added, buying the cash-strapped OPEC nation time as it
juggles major debt payments and other arbitration awards amid a
deep recession exacerbated by lower oil prices.

On Thursday, a lawyer for Venezuela told Reuters the country
would likely seek an annulment, adding processing such a request
would take between 18 and 30 months.

The World Bank's International Center for Settlement of
Investment Disputes (ICSID) issued the award on Tuesday.

Owens-Illinois had originally sought $1 billion in
compensation, the office of Venezuela's solicitor general added
in the statement.

In 2010, the late socialist leader Hugo Chavez nationalized
the Dutch subsidiary OI European Group 's majority
interest in two plants in a move typical of his
14-year-governance.

"They've been exploiting workers, destroying the environment
and taking Venezuelans' money," Chavez said at the time,
according to the press release.
(Reporting by Alexandra Ulmer; Editing by David Gregorio)